1. Field of Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of guiding the movement of animals and, more specifically, to a method and apparatus for guiding the movement of a freely roaming animal using electric stimulation of the animal's brain, where the capabilities of the remotely guided animals are enhanced through teleoperation, guidance and odor detection training.
2. Description of Related Art
Existing technologies mainly involve use of unmanned vehicles to penetrate remote spaces. Remotely guided animals are far superior in their ability to locomote through difficult terrain. Unlike robots, they do not quickly run out of battery power.
Moreover, animals are superior to robots because they possess native abilities that allow them to autonomously find sensory targets, including odors and other environmental features.
Techniques for guiding the movement of a freely roaming animal through brain stimulation have been discussed in the above-mentioned U.S. patent application publication no. 2003/0199944. Such remotely guided animals can penetrate small, dangerous and otherwise inaccessible spaces to map them, return sensor information and carry out simple tasks. The animals are instrumented with electronic communication devices and sensors, and are guided using remote brain stimulation.
However, it would be desirable to enhance the capabilities of the remotely guided animals through teleoperation, guidance and odor detection training.